AZiO Large Print Tri-Color Backlight Keyboard Review

AZiO Large Print Tri-Color Backlight Keyboard Closer Look

With the Large Print AZiO keyboard out of its packaging, it shows off its clean looking facade. It isn't overly flashy as it only sports a small AZiO logo centered on the wrist space. The layout is standard with a full number pad to the right (as many of you know, having a dedicated number pad is a big deal to me). The letters on the keys seem to overwhelm me in size, but are certainly easy to read even without the backlighting. There are basic media keys along the top, which I should mention work right out of the box without needing any drivers. The top rightmost button is used for changing the LED colors, which I will demonstrate later. The back of the keyboard is pretty simple in nature as well. There are two rubber feet to help hold things in place along the bottom edge and two nifty feet to add a bit of height in the back (which you'll probably want on this one).

Zooming in a notch or two allows you to read the sticker on the back of the keyboard. I am not sure why I always take this shot, but you can recall that it was made in China, what brand it is, and I guess more importantly what model it is when your buddy asks what the heck you are using. Shifting the camera a bit gives you a close look at one of the fold-out feet. It doesn't look like it offers much height but with the rolled wrist rest area, you'll be happy to have even that little boost from the back side.

For once I actually thought the included manual was rather useful, as well as short, sweet, and to the point. For anyone who doesn't understand the basic symbols of life (I'm joking), you can figure out very quickly what each of the media keys does. Well done AZiO.

Now it is time for some fun; it's time to plug it in! The first picture shows off the plain non-illuminated keyboard. I guess now is as good a time as any to mention that only when it's unplugged will you ever see the keyboard this way. There's no "off" setting for the LED colors – once it's powered by your USB port/hub it will always be blue, red, or purple in color. It's not a big deal though, as the lighting is very well done. The backlighting is better than most jobs I've seen with fairly even color. The red is a little erratic in brightness but is still rather even throughout the keys. Purple is obviously the brightest, as it uses the two blue and red colors together to make purple. Overall I was just rather impressed at the coloring from this inexpensive keyboard.

While still plugged in, I thought it was worth taking a few more shots of the keys themselves just to reiterate how even that color truly is and also how MASSIVE the lettering really is. You can see on the number keys that even the symbols are emphasized for easy reading. The basic function keys are even easy to see from a distance. The only oddballs in the whole picture are the green indicator lights for the num lock, caps lock and scroll lock. They are pretty dimly lit and are easy to ignore next to whichever of the three colors you decide to use.

Overall it's a pretty nice looking keyboard and doesn't feel overly cheap at first touch either. I guess some testing is order to find out how well the AZiO KB505U – Large Print Tri-Color Backlit Keyboard actually works. Keep reading to find out…trust me, you want to keep reading.